The post made by Shavoya Easy for this assignment in my opinion perfectly pictures the typical American household in the 20th century. The post shows a husband who is the “money maker” of the household since he is in his office clothes still and he is relaxing on his sofa while reading the daily newspaper. In his eyes and in the family’s eyes he is the focal point of everyone’s lives because of the actions others are doing for him. The son is holding another newspaper which I am assuming is to switch out whenever he is done reading the one he has in his hand and the child is also lighting the dad’s tobacco pipe. The mother is holding a plate of cake which I am assuming she made and she is also wearing a maid outfit which represents how she is taking care of all of the housework a paid maid would do. She is submissive to the man of the household and while he is away “working harder than anyone else”, the mother is in charge of taking care of the children, cleaning, cooking, etc. Even the family dog is assisting the leisure of the husband by changing his shoes. The family’s job is to surround themselves around the husband and make sure the husband’s only job is to work and relax when they get home. It completely undermines every other person’s day-to-day hard work and stress. Not to say one person’s stress is more than another however, mothers are told that their job is not hard enough since they do not have to “go to work”. It makes women obtain a mindset that they are only successful individuals if they submit themselves to the needs of men. Also generating the idea that, if a man does not fall in love with her or he cannot fully support her financially she is an embarrassment to the American Dream. It’s a mindset that still exists to this day and has created many forms of misogyny within many cultures (that I have seen myself). For example, in one of my cultural backgrounds (Mexican), the women’s only job is to give up their education, which could be even before graduating high school, give birth to their children, and tend to all of their needs on their own. When dinner is made, the food must be brought to the husband by the wife and the husband always eats first since they are the ones bringing in the money. Whatever dreams and aspirations women had, were forced to take them down and abandon all dreams regardless of anything. This is a lifestyle that is within many cultures around the globe and not only in American, and it makes it incredibly hard for women to make it into a successful career whether it is politics, business, architecture, etc. because men have created this idea that women are to be the submissive ones and have no true strengths beside being the caregiver. I can only speak on behalf of my experience but the women that I know today who come from immigrant families are struggling to be the change because of their parents and forcing them to fit into one category. Friends I know who are a part of the LGBTQ+ community are not accepted by their families because they will not marry a man and bear their own children. Newer generations are breaking these cultural barriers that have been passed down for centuries but at a cost that some of their families do not understand this new lifestyle and it is heartbreaking. We do not live in a world where women’s dreams, rights, and strength is to be denied. Everyone regardless of gender, sexuality, race, socio-economic status deserves equal rights and should never fit into an ideology that forces them into one category where mobility does not exist. It is understandable that this lifestyle may have existed before for centuries but it does not mean it is correct and the morally humane way to live and treat others. We live in a decade (more than ever) where we are correcting past mistakes and hopefully future generations will solve the mistakes we have made.

The post created by Lyn titled “Women Working In Poor Conditions” really hit home for me seeing how working environments can vary across the world. What is more striking to me is how third world countries are producing these products for developed countries like the United States and most of Europe. Developed countries should be leaders for other countries around the globe and should be paving the path for those who need assistance.  The United States in particular is allowing this behavior to continue and saying it is okay to respect your employees within bare minimum respect despite overcoming those same issues decades ago. Seeing how in the picture only women of all ages and boys (who are obviously minors working) working puts it into perspective that change is needed. There are so many working hazards that would not pass in the United States like it being obviously very crowded with many people and fabrics and can easily cause a fire that was shown in both videos for this week’s assignment. The YouTube video called Triangle Returns shows how a fire broke out in a very similar fashion to the fire in the sweatshop in NYC in 1911. Factories in Bangladesh are underpaying their workers and respond to any form of resistance with violence that can lead to death. After the fire that broke out in 1911 in NYC, there were protests happening all around the city immediately and forced a change in the workforce. With voices being heard and 100 years of progress laws were created to enforce safety standards and child labor laws to ensure the safety of everyone. There should be no reason why American companies are using third-world countries for exploitation when America had to go through the same struggles. It is modern-day slavery overseas that needs to be stopped. Equal pay, child labor laws, union laws, etc. should be enforced all around the globe regardless of what country it is. Working in a restaurant myself and seeing how laws from 100 years ago are still being applied today and seeing how useful they are, it is unimaginable how they didn’t exist before. However, many companies especially after COVID are dealing with many protest from their employees demanding better pay and more rights as workers. With both videos being watched and the article, it is becoming very clear that the United States has slowly digressed and lost its motive because not only are they allowing horrible work conditions to occur in other countries, but they are lacking to take care of their own workers here. Unemployment is at an all-time high due to employees leaving their jobs looking for a better one. Even with that being said when it comes to diversity in the workforce, it is uncommon to see women at a high management level and many have to endure immense amounts of harassment to make it past a day of work. In complete honesty, the picture shows how ugly companies can be after “making it” and forgetting all they did to get where they’re at. CEOs are okay with abusing workers at home and overseas (especially women and minors) in order to make as much profit as possible. I hope that immediate change is brewing to change the lives of all workers to create some form of equality.

Growing up in the Bronx I was surrounded by minorities constantly. In my entire primary education, I don’t recall going to school with a white person or northern Asians; going to Fordham, getting food, on the train or bus I looked at people that looked like me. It wasn’t until I started working or attended college which both were in Manhattan where I started to feel like a minority being a first-generation gay Latino student. As stated in “There Is No Hierarchy of oppressions” by Audre Lorde all struggles are equally as important regardless of what it is, but an individual can have more than one characteristic of being a minority making living in a white man’s world much harder. I started to notice how being a minority could affect one’s life in every aspect including education, socio-economic status, where you live, etc. It’s aggravating to know that because of a difference in my skin color, sexual orientation, gender, or religion my chances of accomplishing my goals and dreams are drastically harder and I can only imagine what that could be like for Audre Lorde.

Audre Lorde explains a couple of characteristics she displays as a minority. She is Black, lesbian, a feminist, socialist, and in an interracial relationship. She talks about all the battles she has gone through and how any battle against a form of oppression is a fight against all oppression. Anyone that is a minority regardless of what it could be or how many ways one can be a minority are all fighting together. What Lorde is saying is very inspiring to band together with other people and fight against oppression. Laws that forbid individuals to not marry one another, or laws controlling women’s body or some denying immigrants from around the globe looking for a better life. The United States was founded on the idea of rescuing immigrants and offering a new beginning, yet from the start, that idea has been denied for everyone except the white man.

Carmen on the snapshot 4 tab posted a picture that resonated with me and the message I got from reading Lorde’s piece. Women fighting to obtain equal rights as men (in this picture equal pay) yet are close to their goal but once they are almost there to score there is a huge obstacle preventing them from scoring. Through the picture the rhino is covering the majority of the goal yet there is space to score a goal by going over/under or around, however for me it raises the question of why should women have to go out of their way and put in extreme amounts of effort to receive the rights they deserved, and more so a right that will even the playing field? Society has created such a subconscious misogynistic mindset that when provoked will completely deny any ideas of misogyny. Ask a white politician on their stand in women’s oppression and they will offer a handful of ways women can work around their oppression to succeed but avoid the obvious answer which is removing all oppression and giving equal rights.

Coming from a Hispanic background, this is something I hope many individuals from my culture learn to adapt- to be able to live without gender roles and stereotyping to get in the way. In our culture, it is common ground for women to tend to every one of their husband’s needs. These needs are simple things that men don’t need the assistance of a woman to do but is seen as normal such as serving them a plate of food, laying out and washing their husband’s clothing, and depending on the men to provide financially while they take care of the kids at home. I am glad to see this change, at least in mainstream America because it signifies how far we have come from the classic gender roles and stereotyping many of us are still accustomed to. The excerpt from “Feminist Politics: Where We Stand” by Bell Hooks takes a stand to demonstrate how male domination in society victimizes, exploits, and oppresses women in every way shape and form.

This would be an example of how women are gaining more sovereignty over their lives as the woman in the picture now doesn’t have to cook and doesn’t have a man looming over her pressuring her to fit into the gender stereotype. The article states that women were bound to work service jobs or be housewives or otherwise be discriminated against in the workplace, a way of thinking I see that my culture has yet to let go of. Although women are being more recognized for their strength and power, their sovereignty remains in danger as they allow for the men to be the sole providers of the house while they stay at home and tend to their husband’s every need to make them happy. Relationships in general should be equal and a two-way road for respect and treating women as if they are objects goes against that and turns it into a one way street.

“Sex and gender 101” by Kyl Myers states that, as a society, because we view the difference of one chromosome to be so important that we even raise the different genders to act and behave differently as well. Myers states that “… boys are taught and expected to be tough, risk-taking, rowdy, athletic, strong, aggressive…uninterested in domestic chores and care-taking, unromantic…” while girls are taught to be “…soft, submissive, cautious, delicate, graceful, prissy, pretty, interested in domestic chores and care-taking, romantic…” when these are qualities that shouldn’t be assigned in the first place. Everyone grows up differently and are interested in different things and to assign someone to act a certain way is to strip them of their free will and sovereignty. As a society, we should strive to be like this poster, straying away from the classic gender roles and stereotypes and allowing women to be freer with their choices without limiting them to certain duties or occupations. Living in a society where the patriarchy has all the power is toxic and unhealthy because it does not allow for everyone to live the way they please, only in the way that pleases the men in power, and I believe that is something that should be changed moving forward.